Drama Desk Award Noms Announced

The nominees for this year's Drama Desk Awards have been announced. The small ceremony took place at 9:45 AM at the New York Friars Club, with past Tony Award winners Bebe Neuwirth and Len Cariou announcing.

The Drama Desk is "an organization of theatre critics, writers and editors that honors excellence in all areas of New York theatre: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway and not-for-profit." The nominating committee for the 2007-2008 Awards consists of Barbara Siegel (TalkinBroadway.com, TheaterMania.com), chairperson; Dan Bacalzo (TheaterMania.com); Robert Cashill (New York Theater News and Live Design); Celia Ipiotis (Eye on the Arts); Gerard Raymond (Back Stage and The Advocate); and Richard Ridge (broadwaybeat.com).

Nominees for the 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards are:

Outstanding Play
Alan Ayckbourn, "Intimate Exchanges"
Rinde Eckert, "Horizon"
Liz Flahive, "From Up Here"
Horton Foote, "Dividing the Estate"
Tracy Letts, "August: Osage County"
Tom Stoppard, "Rock ’n’ Roll"

Outstanding Musical
"A Catered Affair"
"Adding Machine"
"Passing Strange"
"The Glorious Ones"
"The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
"Xanadu"

Outstanding Revival of a Play
"Boeing-Boeing"
"Happy Days"
"Macbeth"
"The Country Girl"
"The Dining Room"
"The Return of the Prodigal"

Outstanding Revival of a Musical
"Black Nativity"
"Gypsy"
"South Pacific"
"Sunday in the Park with George"
"Take Me Along"

Outstanding Revue
"Forbidden Broadway: Rude Awakening"
"Fugitive Songs"
"Make Me a Song"

Outstanding Actor in a Play
Bill Champion, "Intimate Exchanges"
Kevin Kline, "Cyrano de Bergerac"
Bill Pullman, "Peter and Jerry"
Mark Rylance, "Boeing-Boeing"
Tobias Segal, "From Up Here"
Rufus Sewell, "Rock 'n' Roll"

Outstanding Actress in a Play
Sinead Cusack, "Rock 'n' Roll"
Deanna Dunagan, "August: Osage County"
Frances McDormand, "The Country Girl"
Amy Morton, "August: Osage County"
Fiona Shaw, "Happy Days"
Julie White, "From Up Here"

Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Daniel Breaker, "Passing Strange"
André De Shields, "Black Nativity"
Daniel Evans, "Sunday in the Park with George"
Cheyenne Jackson, "Xanadu"
Matthew Morrison, "10 Million Miles"
Paulo Szot, "South Pacific"

Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Sierra Boggess, "The Little Mermaid"
Patti LuPone, "Gypsy"
Kelli O’Hara, "South Pacific"
Faith Prince, "A Catered Affair"
Alice Ripley, "Next to Normal"
Jenna Russell, "Sunday in the Park with George"

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
John Cullum, "The Conscientious Objector"
Conleth Hill, "The Seafarer"
Francis Jue, "Yellow Face"
Arian Moayed, "Masked"
Jeff Perry, "August: Osage County"
Michael T. Weiss, "Scarcity"

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Elizabeth Ashley, "Dividing the Estate"
Johanna Day, "Peter and Jerry"
Zoe Kazan, "100 Saints You Should Know"
Linda Lavin, "The New Century"
Rondi Reed, "August: Osage County"
Marisa Tomei, "Top Girls"

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Danny Burstein, "South Pacific"
Christopher Fitzgerald, "Young Frankenstein"
Boyd Gaines, "Gypsy"
Shuler Hensley, "Young Frankenstein"
Bobby Steggert, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Tom Wopat, "A Catered Affair"

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Laura Benanti, "Gypsy"
Leslie Kritzer, "A Catered Affair"
Andrea Martin, "Young Frankenstein"
Mary Testa, "Xanadu"
Amy Warren, "Adding Machine"
Mare Winningham, "10 Million Miles"

Outstanding Director of a Play
David Schweizer, "Horizon"
Anna D. Shapiro, "August: Osage County"
Leigh Silverman, "From Up Here"
Jonathan Silverstein, "The Dining Room"
Matthew Warchus, "Boeing-Boeing"
Deborah Warner, "Happy Days"

Outstanding Director of a Musical
Christopher Ashley, "Xanadu"
Sam Buntrock, "Sunday in the Park with George"
David Cromer, "Adding Machine"
John Doyle, "A Catered Affair"
Bob McGrath, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Bartlett Sher, "South Pacific"

Outstanding Choreography
Karole Armitage, "Passing Strange"
Rob Ashford, "Cry-Baby The Musical"
Shana Carroll and Gypsy Snider, "Traces"
Dan Knechtges, "Xanadu"
Peter Pucci, "Queens Boulevard (the musical)"
Susan Stroman, "Young Frankenstein"

Outstanding Music
John Bucchino, "A Catered Affair"
Stephen Flaherty, "The Glorious Ones"
Tom Kitt, "Next to Normal"
Mark Mulcahy, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Joshua Schmidt, "Adding Machine"
Stew and Heidi Rodewald, "Passing Strange"

Outstanding Lyrics
Lynn Ahrens, "The Glorious Ones"
Mel Brooks, "Young Frankenstein"
John Bucchino, "A Catered Affair"
Ben Katchor, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Jason Loewith and Joshua Schmidt, "Adding Machine"
Stew, "Passing Strange"

Outstanding Book of a Musical
Douglas Carter Beane, "Xanadu"
Harvey Fierstein, "A Catered Affair"
Ben Katchor, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Jason Loewith and Joshua Schmidt, "Adding Machine"
Stew, "Passing Strange"
Eric H. Weinberger, "Wanda's World"

Outstanding Orchestrations
Doug Besterman, "Young Frankenstein"
Jason Carr, "Sunday in the Park with George"
Michael Starobin, "The Glorious Ones"
Stew and Heidi Rodewald, "Passing Strange"
Jonathan Tunick, "A Catered Affair"
Tim Weil, "10 Million Miles"

Outstanding Set Design of a Play
Beowulf Boritt, "Spain"
Scott Bradley, "Eurydice"
David Korins, "Hunting and Gathering"
Santo Loquasto, "Trumpery"
Scott Pask, "Les Liaisons Dangereuses"
Clint Ramos, "The Return of the Prodigal"

Outstanding Set Design of a Musical
David Gallo, "A Catered Affair"
Takeshi Kata, "Adding Machine"
Derek McLane, "10 Million Miles"
George Tsypin, "The Little Mermaid"
Robin Wagner, "Young Frankenstein"
Michael Yeargan, "South Pacific"

Outstanding Costume Design
Mara Blumenfeld, "The Glorious Ones"
Michael Bottari and Ronald Case, Jessica Jahn, "Die Mommie Die!"
Ann Hould-Ward, "A Catered Affair"
Ana Kuzmanic, "August: Osage County"
Katrina Lindsay, "Les Liaisons Dangereuses"
William Ivey Long, "Young Frankenstein"

Outstanding Lighting Design
Kevin Adams, "The 39 Steps"
Ken Billington, "Sunday in the Park with George"
Maruti Evans, "Slaughterhouse-Five"
Donald Holder, "South Pacific"
Natasha Katz, "The Little Mermaid"
Keith Parham, "Adding Machine"

Outstanding Sound Design
Adam Cork, "Macbeth"
Jorge Cousineau, "Opus"
Joseph Fosco, "The Conversation"
Scott Lehrer, "South Pacific"
Mic Pool, "The 39 Steps"
Tony Smolenski IV, "Adding Machine"

Outstanding Solo Performance
Kris Andersson, "Dixie's Tupperware Party"
Laurence Fishburne, "Thurgood"
Stephen Lang, "Beyond Glory"
April Yvette Thompson, "Liberty City"

Outstanding Projection and Video Design
Paul Barritt, "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea"
Timothy Bird and The Knifedge Creative Network, "Sunday in the Park with George"
Zachary Borovay, "A Catered Affair"
Jim Findlay and Jeff Sugg, "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island"
Lorna Heavey, "Macbeth"
Tal Yarden, "The Misanthrope"

Unique Theatrical Experience
"Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea"
"Cut to the Chase"
"Fabrik – The Legend of M. Rabinowitz"
"The 39 Steps"
"Traces"

Two special awards were announced, as well.

Outstanding Ensemble Performances
"The Dining Room"
"The Homecoming"

Special Awards
- Edward Albee in his 80th year, "whose provocative plays, including this season's Peter and Jerry, enrich the American theater."
- James Earl Jones, a "commanding force on the stage for nearly half a century."
- 59E59 Theaters, whose "imaginative curatorial vision has created a stimulating environment to nurture a diverse range of artists."
- Playwrights Horizons for "ongoing support to generations of theater artists and undiminished commitment to producing new work."

The 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards will be held on May 18th at the F.H. LaGuardia Concert Hall at Lincoln Center. It will be hosted by the four-person cast of upcoming musical "[title of show]", along with their musical director Larry Pressgrove. (The show is scheduled to open on July 17th at the Lyceum Theatre.)

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